Search Climate Insights Directory

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the global and regional policy and financial responses to the surge in foreign investment in agricultural land and water following the 2008 food crisis. It details various voluntary guidelines, principles, and financing mechanisms designed to ensure that large-scale investments are transparent, respect land rights, and contribute to food security and rural development.

This briefing by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) outlines the global and regional normative and financial responses to the increase in foreign investment in agricultural land and water, often termed 'land grabbing', following the 2008 food crisis. It evaluates various guidelines, principles, and funding mechanisms designed to ensure that agricultural investments are transparent, respect land rights, and contribute to rural development and food security.

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) examines the emergence of agricultural growth poles (agropoles) and corridors in Africa. It analyzes these tools as strategies to attract private investment and transition from subsistence to commercial agriculture, while highlighting the legal, financial, and operational risks associated with their implementation.

This fact sheet from the International Institute for Sustainable Development lists the top 15 cotton-producing countries in 2016 and references data sources regarding sustainable markets and crop distribution.

This policy brief argues that state-centric strategies to combat organised crime must be supplemented by community-based, context-specific responses, particularly in conflict and post-conflict settings. The document identifies five key drivers of community resilience: social capital, community capacity, the role of women, economic capital, and infrastructure, based on analysis of four communities in Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau, and Burkina Faso.

This briefing examines the potential for a West African military intervention in Mali following the seizure of northern territory by rebel groups, including the MNLA, Ansar Dine, and AQIM. It analyzes the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) reservations regarding such a mandate, the complexities of mediating between groups with competing agendas, and the necessity of combining military action with diplomatic efforts and humanitarian assistance.

This report examines the drivers of community resilience against organised crime and violence within four specific communities located in Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau, and Burkina Faso, arguing that state-centric strategies must be supplemented by local, context-specific responses.

This report by the Institute for Security Studies examines the intersections of violent extremism, illicit activities, and local conflicts within the Liptako-Gourma region, utilizing interview data from Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

The Peace and Security Council Report No 176 analyzes the outcomes of the 38th AU Summit in February 2025, focusing on leadership transitions, the chairship of Angola, and the ongoing challenges of the 'Silencing the Guns' agenda. It highlights the election of Mahamoud Ali Youssouf as AUC chair and the debate over rotational versus permanent membership in the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC).

This report documents a seminar held on 1 October 2008 in Pretoria, featuring a presentation by General Martin Luther Agwai, the UNAMID Force Commander. General Agwai discusses the complexities of the conflict in Darfur, the transition from the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) to the AU-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), and the significant operational and logistical challenges facing the mission.

This report by the Institute for Security Studies analyzes projects aimed at preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) in Central, East, and West Africa. It identifies critical gaps in funding duration, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) capacity, and the potential for P/CVE labeling to stigmatize target communities, while suggesting a shift toward longer-term funding and greater African state ownership.

This document consists of Annex VI and three Protocols of an agreement between the European Community and ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) States. It defines the lists of least-developed, landlocked, and island ACP States, establishes rules for the operating expenditure and privileges of joint institutions, and outlines the qualified status of South Africa's participation in the agreement.

This concluding chapter of 'Invisible Stakeholders' argues that children and youth in Africa are not merely victims of conflict but active agents of change and transformation. The author contends that viewing them solely as victims obscures the dynamics of conflict and ignores how young people make choices that impact the trajectories of war. The text examines the socio-economic and political drivers of youth mobilization, the failure of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) processes, and the influence of global economic structures on African stability.

This policy brief, produced by the Institute for Security Studies as part of the African Futures Project, uses the International Futures (IFs) model to analyze the impact of improving water and sanitation access across Africa. It argues that an aggressive annual improvement rate of just under 2 percentage points could significantly reduce child malnutrition and infant mortality, increase GDP, and lower the probability of state failure by 2050.

The August 2023 issue of the Peace and Security Council Report by the Institute for Security Studies examines the African Union's (AU) struggle to prevent unconstitutional changes of government (UCGs), the need to reform the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA), the recruitment of child soldiers by ISWAP in the Lake Chad Basin, and the outcomes of the 2023 Russia-Africa Summit.

The October 2023 Peace and Security Council Report by the Institute for Security Studies examines the systemic weaknesses of the African Union (AU), the escalating conflict in Ethiopia's Amhara region, the challenges facing the AU Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), and the broader implications of withdrawing peacekeepers from African conflicts. It also discusses the AU's new membership in the G20.

This November 2015 issue of the Peace & Security Council Report by the Institute for Security Studies analyzes the relationship between the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU), the fragile political and humanitarian state of Madagascar, the AU's response to the 2015 coup in Burkina Faso, and the status of UN peacekeeping in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

This report by the Institute for Security Studies examines the design, implementation, and evaluation of preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) projects across six countries in West and Central Africa. Based on data from 133 projects, it identifies a significant gap between global policy and local practice, noting that while there is high investment in community-based initiatives, there is a critical lack of evidence-based evaluation and a failure to address the broader structural drivers of extremism.

A letter dated February 24, 2014, addressed to World Bank President Jim Yong Kim from a coalition of 168 organizations and individuals, urging the revival of B-SPAN, the Bank's Internet-based webcasting system.

The 'Manuel sur l’action climatique' is a guide published by Natural Justice designed to strengthen climate resilience in Senegal through legal empowerment. It provides communities with a framework to understand climate change, identify their specific vulnerabilities, and utilize political and legal instruments to defend their rights and protect the environment.